Chase Names William B. Harrison, Jr. President and Chief Executive Officer.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 24, 1999--The Chase Manhattan Corporation (NYSE:CMB) announced today that William B. Harrison, Jr., 55, has been elected President and CEO. Mr. Harrison succeeds Walter V. Shipley, 63, who will continue in his capacity as Chairman of the Board. Thomas G. Labrecque, 60, President and COO will retire. All of the changes are effective June 1, 1999.

In a joint letter to employees announcing the changes, Messrs. Shipley and Labrecque said: "Fifteen months ago, we formed a nine person Executive Committee and started sharing more of our responsibilities with the members of that committee in order to prepare them for an eventual transition. Over the last year, we have had an extensive series of meetings with our Board of Directors to consider the substance and timing of management succession. We and the Board concluded that Chase has a wealth of talent on its senior management team and that the next generation is ready to take over."

Commenting on his partnership with Mr. Labrecque, Mr. Shipley said: "Almost four years ago, the two of us set out as partners to form one of the best financial services companies in the world, characterized by market leadership positions, quality products, a focus on client relationships and a team-based culture. Tom and I committed ourselves to making decisions based upon what is in the best interest of shareholders, customers and employees. Bill Harrison is the right person to continue that commitment and to lead Chase into the next century."

Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Harrison said, "I am honored by the confidence placed in me by Walter, Tom and the Board. We have a dedicated and experienced team, and Chase has a broad base of clients and product leadership, diverse business franchises and demonstrated financial discipline that positions us very favorably for the future."

Mr. Harrison is currently Vice Chairman of the Board of Chase, where he has served since 1990, and will continue as a director upon assuming his new position. Since 1987, he has also been responsible for the operations of the Global Bank, which consist of Chase's Investment Bank, Global Markets, middle market, the private bank and private equity investing. He has been with Chase for over 30 years and is largely credited with successfully integrating the wholesale operations of Chemical Bank and Chase into one of the world's most profitable wholesale-investment banks.

William B. Harrison Jr. Vice Chairman and Director The Chase Manhattan Corporation The Chase Manhattan Bank 

William B. Harrison Jr. is vice chairman and a director of The Chase Manhattan Corporation and The Chase Manhattan Bank. He is in charge of the corporation's wholesale banking activities worldwide, which include investment banking, capital markets and trading, venture capital and private equity, as well as private and middle market banking.

Effective June 1, 1999, Mr. Harrison will become president and chief executive officer of Chase, and will continue as a director.

Mr. Harrison became vice chairman of Chase Manhattan upon its merger on March 31, 1996, with Chemical Banking Corporation, where he had served as vice chairman with similar responsibilities since Chemical's merger with Manufacturers Hanover on December 31, 1991.

Mr. Harrison joined Chemical in 1967. After serving in various assignments in the Corporate Division, he was appointed district head of the Western Region in San Francisco in 1976 and was assigned to the London branch as general manager in 1978. Mr. Harrison was named senior vice president in 1980 and, in 1982, was promoted to division head of Europe in charge of the bank's European business. In 1983, he was named executive vice president and head of the U.S. Corporate Division. In 1986, he assumed responsibility for the North America Division. In 1987, he became group executive in charge of the Banking & Corporate Finance Group, which developed and managed credit and investment banking services for corporate and institutional clients worldwide. He was named a vice chairman of Chemical in August 1990.

Mr. Harrison is a director of Dillard Department Stores, Little Rock, AR; Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, Inc., New Orleans, LA; the United Cerebral Palsy Research and Education Foundation and the National Dance Institute. He is a member of The Bankers Roundtable and the Kenan-Flagler Business School Board of Visitors. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Banco General de Negocios and of the Institute on Education & Government of the Teachers College of Columbia University. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Central Park Conservancy, of Carnegie Hall and the Board of Advisors of the North Carolina Outward Bound School.

Mr. Harrison, who was born in 1943 in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, received an A.B. degree in Economics from the University of North Carolina and is a graduate of the Harvard Business School's International Senior Management Programme in Switzerland.

Mr. Harrison and his wife, Anne, live in Greenwich, Connecticut, with their two children.